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Make Your Mark - and help shape policies

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Members of the UK Youth Parliament in Wolverhampton are calling on the city's young people to make their mark.

The annual Make Your Mark ballot gives young people the chance to decide what issues their Youth MPs should campaign on and debate in the House of Commons in the year ahead.

Last year, more than 5,000 young people cast their vote in the ballot in Wolverhampton, joining around 875,000 nationally - making it the biggest youth consultation in the country.

The ballot opens on Wednesday (12 August, 2015) - also International Youth Day - with an official launch at the special #OurWorld event Wolverhampton Art Gallery, and young people will be able to choose 1 issue from the 10 topics which will be revealed this week.

They have until Friday 2 October, 2015, to cast their vote either via the United Kingdom Type=links;Linkid=3014;Title=Youth Parliament;Target=_blank; website, or by using a ballot paper available from schools and youth groups across Wolverhampton.

The debate, involving Youth MPs from around the country, will take place at the start of Parliament Week, a national initiative that aims to build a greater awareness of Parliament and the work it does, in November.

Wolverhampton Youth MP Emma Curran said: "Young people are the future so it is crucial that their voices are heard. The Make Your Mark ballot offers a vital platform for them to engage in politics and democracy by voting for an issue that concerns them."

Fellow Youth MP Darram Kooner added: "This is the chance for 11 to 18 year olds to get their voices heard on issues that matter to them, I passionately believe in the importance of Make Your Mark as it empowers the voice of young people not only locally but nationally as well."

Councillor Val Gibson, the City of Wolverhampton Council's Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, said: "Our Youth MPs work really hard for the young people of Wolverhampton, and this is a great opportunity for them to highlight the issues they want debated."